(Watertown, MA) Uppercrusters and swashbucklers cross swords this April as Flat Earth Theatre stages the world-premier of Pirate Lives! The Musical! at the Arsenal Center for the Arts in Watertown. Written by Somerville playwright David Marino with composer Stephen Gilbane, Pirate Lives! pays crass homage to the works of Noel Coward with a tip of the hat to Gilbert and Sullivan. Continue reading →

from left) Bob Mussett, Sierra Kagen, Victoria Townsend, Brian Tuttle, and Zach Eisenstat in “The Sneeze” from the Independent Drama Society's production of Neil Simon's THE GOOD DOCTOR, playing July 15-23 at the Factory Theatre, 791 Tremont Street in Boston's South End. Tix and info: http://www.independentdramasociety.org. Photo by Bethany Krevat.

If it wasn’t so funny, it would be serious. Chekov is primarily known for his serious drama: The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, etc. but Neil Simon draws upon Chekov’s short stories for his play, The Good Doctor. Chekov’s short stories have been said to be precursor to Seinfeld. The writer of such tv shows as: Your Show of Shows and Caesar’s Hour recognized the unique comedy style and put stories “about nothing” to the stage years before the tv show “about nothing”. Those who miss the “Junior Mint”, “The Soup Nazi”, and “The Chinese Restaurant” can relish in some new-old stories such as “The Sneeze”, “Surgery”, and “The Drowned Man”. The Independent Drama Society’s final show utilizes the comedic talents to go out with a laugh for the audience and a whimper for the characters. Continue reading →

/gēk/ n. A person of generally high intelligence capable of learning detailed information about how things work, why, and often how to make, fix, or improve them with a propensity for action in those regards...They gather in groups and have discussions over fictional worlds (and the possible sciences at work therein), the benefits of "open-source", or why ninjas are obviously better since they're fast and silent...those loud, drunk, stinky pirates would never know what hit them.... -Darvus Laan-http://geekdictionary. computing.net/define/geek /gēk/ n. informal. [usually with modifier] a knowledgeable and obsessive enthusiast: a computer geek -Oxford Dictionary Although an older definition refers to a carnival performer who eats the heads off live animals, no live animals were eaten at any time during the writing of the reviews on this site.